Union Station

Museums & Historic Places in Nashville

Nashville is a city full of museums and history . From the former home of Andrew Jackson at The Hermitage to the beautiful architecture of the Nashville Federal Building. Downtown Nashville has many opportunities for sightseeing within walking distance of our downtown Nashville location.

Whether you are coming to Nashville to see the sites or to attend a convention or do business, if you have a few moments to spare you should visit one of the Nashville area museums . The Frist Center for the Visual Arts is located adjacent to the Union Station hotel, and is a great choice for a break from the rigors of the road. While you will be staying in a historic buiding and former rail station, there is also the Tennessee Central Railway Museum nearby which will immerse you in the romantic past of rail travel.

• Belle Meade Plantation

  (5 miles) Belle Meade Plantation named one of America’s grandest mansions is a 30 acre historic site. The centerpiece of the property is the Belle Meade mansion built in 1853. This Greek revival house was home to five generations of the Harding-Jackson family. In the late 19th century, the farm encompassed 5,400 acres and was one of the largest private estates in Nashville and thoroughbred nursery famous for breeding and training championship race horses. Recent Kentucky derby winners like Funny Cide and Barbarro, even racing legends like Secretariat and Seabiscuit can trace their bloodlines back to the breeding stock at Belle Meade.

   

• Country Music Association

  (4 blocks) The organization that is charged with growing and advancing Country Music was founded in 1958. They host several events throughout the year including the CMA Awards and CMA Country Music Festival.

   

• Frist Center for Visual Arts

  (adjacent): Originally housing Nashville’s main post office, the historic Frist building became an art museum in 2001. Today the Frist Center is one of the city’s most innovative museums, and is centered on continually changing exhibits rather than on permanent collections. With interactive galleries and free admission for children.

   

• The Hermitage, Home of President Andrew Jackson

  (15 miles) The Hermitage is the most authentic early presidential home in America, where you'll be a honored guest in the Jackson family mansion, the formal garden, slave quarters, and the original log cabin the Jacksons occupied in 1804.

   

• Nashville Federal Building

  (1.5 miles) Its cornerstone laid by President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877, this historic building is a wonderful example of 19th century architecture in Nashville.

   

• Parthenon at Centennial Park

  (2 miles) The Parthenon stands proudly as the centerpiece of Centennial Park, Nashville's premier urban park. The re-creation of the 42-foot statue Athena is the focus of the Parthenon just as it was in ancient Greece. The building and the Athena statue are both full-scale replicas of the Athenian originals.

   

• Tennessee Central Railway Museum

  This Nashville railroad museum also features a running railroad offering train rides from Nashville to points east on vintage 1950's railway cars.

   

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